Living Constructs
by Blue-Fire01
Summary: Taylor Hebert always triggered because of the bullying of classmates and a former friend. Her solitude brought her freedom in finding a love of the anime, Naruto. So, instead of bugs she learns to bring her drawings to life and under her control. If she can't have friends with real people, then whose to say she can't make some? But they're not imaginary, they're real.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: Taylor Hebert always triggered because of the bullying of classmates and a former friend. Her solitude brought her freedom in finding a love of the anime, Naruto. So, instead of bugs she learns to bring her drawings to life and under her control. If she can't have friends with real people, then who to say she can't make some? But they're not imaginary, they're real.**

 **P/A: I have recently discovered the (in my opinion) masterpiece that is** ** _Worm._** **So, I've decided to find out what fanfiction there was of it and found my search to be lacking. Fine, whatever, so I decided to write this bad boy up instead as a break to my other story.**

 **Taylor is going to be getting powers no matter what. Though she no longer has the bug controlling abilities like in canon… I think some people might not like that but whatever.**

 **The timeline has been chopped up to her scene in the bathroom after the juice incident. Now I shall leave you with it, there is a P/A at the bottom of the chapter and I hope you have a look if you want to put some input to the direction this story is going.**

 **Disclaimer: I own none of this.**

I approached the sink and stared at myself in the scratched, stained mirror that was bolted above it. I had inherited a thin lipped, wide, expressive mouth from my mother but my large eyes and my gawky figure made me look a lot more like my dad. My dark hair was soaked enough that it clung to my scalp, neck and shoulders. I was wearing a brown hooded sweatshirt over a green t-shirt, but colored blotches of purple, red and orange streaked both. My glasses were beaded with the multicolored droplets of juice and soda. A drip ran down my nose and fell from the tip to land in the sink.

Damn Madison, Sophia and Emma to hell. The juice will stain my clothes.

Using a paper towel from the dispenser, I wiped my glasses off and put them on again. The residual streaks made it just as hard to see, if not worse than it had been.

 _Deep breaths, Taylor,_ I told myself.

I pulled the glasses off to clean them again with a wet towel, and found the streaks were still there.

An inarticulate scream of fury and frustration escaped my lips, and I kicked the plastic bucket that sat just beneath the sink, sending it and the toilet brush inside flying into the wall. When that wasn't enough, I pulled off my backpack and used a two-handed grip to hurl it. I wasn't using my locker anymore: certain individuals had vandalized or broken into it on four different occasions. My bag was heavy, loaded down with everything I'd anticipated needing for the day's classes. It crunched audibly on impact with the wall.

"Great, now my art project is ruined!" I ran a hand through my hair, trying not to break down. This bathroom had always been my refuge. For the past year and a half I had been enduring a relentless bullying campaign. I admit I had become lonely in trying to find solitude in the girl's washroom. Depressing as it was, I had a place to fall under the radar during lunch. Now I didn't even have that.

I didn't know what I was supposed to do for my afternoon classes. Our midterm project for art was due, and I couldn't go to class like this. Sophia would be there and I could just imagine her smug smile of satisfaction as I showed up looking like I'd botched an attempt to tie-die everything I owned.

Though, I could leave my project at my teacher's desk before the class started. Avoid Sophia and her harpy followers and turn in my project, hitting two birds with one stone. I unzipped by bag, fishing out my drawing. Sadly, it looked to be wrinkled beyond repair.

My hands shook as I bent over and gripped the edge of the sink, let out a long, slow breath, and brought my hand to my ruined project. For three months, I'd held back. Right now? I didn't care anymore.

I shut my eyes and felt a buzzing crystallize into concrete information. As numerous as winning a lottery, skeletal figures filled the area around me. I could focus on each one in turn, discovering possible parahumans within a few miles of my location. The figures in my sight ranged from adults to children, all made up of blue veins, forming an intricate circulatory system. They looked to be far apart, one being two miles away, while another looked to be in my school. There was around twenty total in a five mile radius. I saw them though the walls of the washroom, glowing as candle light in a pitch black darkness. These people were parahumans who have not yet triggered.

I opened my eyes. I could feel adrenaline thrumming through my body, blood coursing in my veins. I shivered in response to the chilled drinks and juices the trio had poured over me, with anticipation and with just a little fear. Anybody finding out about my power might throw me in jail without a second thought for what I was about to do.

I ripped the pulsing veins of energy from all twenty individuals. They faded to my eyes, and I held a flowing ball of condensed parahuman energy. It was a sum of the potential powers those people might've had if they would've triggered. I brought the ball to my drawing and forced it into the image of one Naruto Uzumaki.

I made a small grunt in concentration as the picture liquefied onto the tile floor, seemingly flowing into a single puddle that molded itself up, "The 9 Tailed Fox's tails should form, the rest should be the exact same as his anime appearance." I said that more for my own reassurance of sticking to my drawing. In my mind, a simple random thought might affect the creation process. Which had resulted in my first creation coming up short of expectations.

My second attempt; Naruto Uzumaki, semi human. His hair was golden blonde and spiked out in every direction with faint whisker marks on his cheeks, his eyes were electric blue often showing warmth and protectiveness to those daring to make eye contact. On his chest was a 2 in the form of a tattoo, indicating he was the second organism I created.

His nine blood red tails swayed out from his rear, twitching and moving as easily as any other limb. I ignored that fact that he wasn't wearing clothes. My powers, for some reason, only created living tissue. So any type of kunai or weapons Naruto was holding in the drawing never formed in the real world. It was a limitation I could work around.

Naruto opened his eyes and sighed in response to my irritation before shrugging his shoulders, "Okay, let me get this straight. I'm your construct and you're my master correct?"

I didn't give him a reply. His question was rhetorical and I knew any organism I create is going to base their information off my knowledge. Case in point, Naruto already had a flash of red in his electric blue eyes. I should probably stop him from running out of the washroom. I was all too aware that I'd get caught and arrested if he attacked my fellow students. Yes, Naruto could red these hall with those girls blood. Though it probably won't be just them. Other girls and a small handful of boys had joined in, 'accidently' skipping over me when passing out assignment handouts, adding their own voices to the taunts and the flood of nasty emails, to get the favor and attention of three of the prettier and more popular girls in our grade. I'd get my revenge, but I doubt my father will look at me the same way again.

"Hold on, Naruto. Regardless of my bullies' actions, I do not like the idea of being outed as a cape or going to jail. Please drop this," I commanded more than asked. He began to calm down, his tails no longer thrashing like whips and eyes returning to blue in color. I walked over to the door and stood with my back to it so nobody could stumble onto the scene before I managed to get Naruto out of his murderous vibe.

Yet, I still had the problem of him being naked and sprouting tails, "Naruto, hop out the window at get some clothes. Meet me at my house okay?"

His glare faded, not because I wanted him to, but because he must have realized the pointlessness of being angry right now, "Sure. I'll meet you there, so be a good little master until I see you in an hour."

I rubbed the bridge of my nose. It seemed he was clearly cheekier than canon Naruto. He laughed as he turned on his feet, "We can talk about this mess when I get back, but I am glad… My first day living and I understand your kindness."

I watched as his broad back walked away a smile tugging at my lips as I turned to go in the direction of the washroom's exit. The jeers and giggles from everyone I walked past were ignored. I caught the first bus that headed in the general direction of home. The chill of early spring compounded the discomfort of my soaked hair and clothes, making me shiver.

I was going to be a superhero. That was the goal I used to calm myself down at moments like these. It was what I used to make myself get out of bed on a school day. It was a crazy dream that made thing tolerable. It was soothing to look forward to, something to work towards. With my two Naruto characters at my side I could do a lot of good. Clean up the gangs that litter this city with their trash. And possibly show up Emma Barns, leader of the trio, with a new 'boyfriend'.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

Naruto looked out from the top of a house as the public bus carrying his master drove away. She'd be safe without him. He turned around, feeling a slight breeze pass between his legs. If anyone saw him no he might die from embarrassment, "Stealing some cloths shouldn't be too hard. But I don't to wear some schmuck's underwear."

In a blur of speed the fox boy raced along the shingled roof tops. A clothing store was coming up ahead. He found the back entrance unlocked, probably due to deliveries coming in, and quickly sorted through the boxes of folded clothes. Getting to the clothes of most importance he found some orange underpants. He hastily put them on and then released that his tails were going to be an issue. With careful skill he wrapped them around his legs and tightly pressed them against his skin. His tails were so long that he'd have to forgo wearing shorts and stick to just blue jeans. After finding a pale orange t-shirt he grabbed a multiple of similar colored shirts from a box. He hurried out of the back of the store and used his advanced speed to get a few blocks away as the alarm sounded.

Within five minutes a police car arrived to the scene. Naruto, standing two blocks away, jumped on the roof tops of a house as he moved toward Taylor's house. Though in the next second he found that his hope to see a parahuman investigating the crime seem to be futile. Apparently they didn't handle the petty crimes of small fry business, "Well it would be more fun if they did."

He arrived to his master's home fairy quickly. He snuck into her bedroom window, and laid down on her bed. She was in the bathroom, slowly removing the juice smell coming off of her as she showered. To Naruto's nose she was shampooing herself while letting her cloths get wet.

He herd her turn off the shower and then her footsteps up the stairs to her bedroom. He grinned at her startled jump at seeing him casually laying on her bed.

"I can see the price tags," Taylor stated, walking into her closet then coming back out fully clothed.

Naruto shrugged, not really caring as he was in desperate need of clothing. He'll be taking off the tags in a bit. Naruto lifted up his shirt, showing the tattooed 2 on his chest, "I'm number two right? So where's one?" He only got general information from his master, so he hadn't the slightest clue as to who she made before him.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

 **Taylor**

I got a change of clothes, grabbed my backpack, and headed downstairs, through the kitchen and into the basement. Naruto following right behind me.

My house is old, and the basement was never renovated. The walls and floor are concrete and the ceiling was exposed boards and electrical cords. The furnace used to be coal fueled, and there was still an old coal chute, two feet by two feet, where the coal trucks used to come by to unload the winter's supply of coal for heating the house. The chute was boarded up, but around the time I was copying my original 'superpower notebook' over in code, I had decided to play it safe in all respects and start getting creative with my privacy. It was then that I'd started using it.

I felt Naruto's eyes at my back, watching in curiosity. I removed one screw and removed the square wooden panel with the peeling white paint that covered the low end of the coal chute. I retrieved a gym bag from inside and put the panel back in place without screwing it back in.

I emptied the contents of the gym bad on the disused workbench that the house's previous owner had left in our basement. I heard Naruto take a sniff of the basement air. Then he was suddenly standing by me, eyes narrowing at the bag's contents. I closed my eyes and spent a minute exercising my power. I brushed my mind against two very different motions, the one coming from Naruto was confusion, the other a mix of fear and eagerness.

"Bahaha~" The blond fell to the basement floor, holding his sides, laughing. I rolled by eyes at the prank loving ninja's antics. I figured he'd get a kick at seeing a fellow character in a humiliating predicament.

The first drawing I brought to life was that of Sasori of the Red Sand. Though my drawing of a red headed teenager carrying the title of S-Class ninja failed to meet reality when I first used my powers three months ago. Instead, I got a core of living flesh of my first living construct. With Naruto laughing and Sasori staying silent until the blond finished, I busied myself with sorting out the contents of the bag. My costume.

Naruto got a hold of himself and picked up a protesting Sasori. My power gave me a slight emotional connection to the both of them, but even with it, the core's demands to put him down radiated obvious anger. Anyone could recognize the curse words he shouted at the smiling blond. A string of blue energy, chakra, sprouted form his core, connected to a carving knife on the table top, and flung it with shocking accuracy.

Naruto grabbed the tool right as it made a cut on his cheek. "Alright, I'll put you down, sheesh." He set Sasori back on the workbench and cupped his cheek. I saw blood flowing between his fingers.

Even under my complete control, these ninja spooked me. At my request, Naruto tossed me the carving knife. I had the workings of my mask figured out, along with my costume. Three months ago, after I'd recovered from the manifestation of my powers, I had started to prepare for the goal I had set for myself. It had involved an exercise routine, training my hand to hand combat, gathering lumber, and preparing my costume.

Costumes were harder than one might think. While members of official teams surely had sources for that stuff, the rest of us were left to either buy costumes, put them together piecemeal with stuff bought from stories or make them form scratch. Each option had its problems. If you bought a costume online, you ran the risk of being traced, which could blow your secret identity before you'd even put a costume on. You could put a costume together with stuff bought from stores, but very few people could do that and look good. The final option, putting a costume together yourself, was just a hell of a lot of work and you could run into the issues of the prior two options – being traced or winding up with a lame costume – depending on where you got your materials and how you went about it.

It the second week after I'd figured out my powers, when I still wasn't entirely sure what was going on, I had Sasori to thank for pulling me out of the gutter and doing something positive. He was an expert wood worker, and a cunning seal master. He taught the basics of storage seals and carving simple logs into works of art. Two weeks in late night studying led to the making a polished piece of wood for my mask. With some touch ups by Sasori I had a blank mask with a carving of a scorpion on the outside. There were no eye holes or an opening for me to breathe through. Yet, I could place it over my face and it felt like I could see normally and breathe just fine. Seals on the inside ensured this, among other smaller details like making it fairly shatter proof and treated for rot.

Yeah, I need a life.

But I had a badass costume.

With my mask done and already polished a deep, cherry oak red, my next step was getting an outfit without it being traced back to me. I didn't have the resources to buy a bullet proof vest, or fancy armor like Ward members did. So I did the next best thing, I bought an Akatsuki robe at the nearest anime store with cash. The cloak was bought with so many others during a sale nobody would trail it back to me. In the end, I looked close to an S-Rank Ninja with my black robe and red clouds. It may not give protection but it looked cool. When Sasori is done making his puppet body I'll have him start making armor for me.

The plan had been for him to finish his body and then start adding his own hidden weaponry. By the time the school year ended he would be fully operational, then follow me in my leap into the world of parahumans.

But the plan had changed. Naruto is now here and he has my back. My costume is ready and Sasori is extremely close to completing his body, minus his weaponry.

When I had been standing in the shower, trying to find the good aspects in the day's troubles, my thoughts had turned to my notebook. I had realized I was procrastinating. I was constantly planning, preparing, considering all the possibilities. There would always be more preparations, and more stuff to learn from Sasori. With my notebook ruined by juice, I no longer had an excuse. I had to move forward.

It was time to do it. I'd wait for Sasori to be done crafting himself. This weekend, with the two of them protecting me, I will be able to face anything.

 **P/A: Good start? Or is it too short? Then again this is only the very beging of the story. I hope you guys like the idea of Sasori. At first I considered our favorite mad bomber but decided to go more along the lines of canon. Taylor uses poison in her bugs, and a good match to that is Sasori with his coated weapons.**

 **For any of you wondering why Taylor doesn't just make all the Naruto cast my answer is that she can't. I plan to address this later, but she has a set number she can make. And she acts as a holder for the energy her living constructs use to make jutsu. With Sasori, a sort of Tinker, this isn't a problem, but don't expect any city destroying jutsu this early in the story. Okay, hope to see you guys later.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

 **P/A: Wow… just wow. A lot of reviews and fav's. I can't believe it. Anyway, pushing my awe aside, the new chapter is now up. I hope to stick to canon as close as possible, and I hope none of you accuse me of just copying the book. I need to keep it parallel to the story's events as well as adding changes with Taylor's new powers. It's hard.**

 **I don't own anything. No, really, I'm telling you the truth.**

My training schedule consisted of running every morning and every other afternoon. In the process, Naruto and I had picked up a pretty good knowledge of the east side of the city. Growing up in Brockton Bay, my parents had told me stuff like "stick to the Boardwalk". Even on my runs, I had scrupulously stayed on the Boardwalk and avoided the bad part of town. Now it was Sunday night and I was in costume and breaking the rules.

Sasori had finished his puppet body on Friday, an unfinished masterpiece (holding only his living core) that was an identical copy of the red headed ninja on the show. He also wore the Akatsuki uniform, lacking his ring and straw hat, but he at least matched with my own. How he got his hands on one I'll never know. Naruto wasn't a huge fan of wearing a black cloak with red clouds, so he improvised and died his a solid black. After some debating, both Sasori and Naruto decided to wear purely black masks. Their masks were the same as mine, wooden and shatter proof, with seals on the inside to stick to the person's face. No belts to secure them, which I liked because it left my hair free. But it did have the issue of someone spotting their unique hair color. Sasori solved that by saying they could easily use a Henge no Jutsu to turn into a different person out in public. With all that, I'd say we looked badass.

It was just after midnight, and I was crossing the line between one of the nicest parts of town and the part of town where the crack whores and gangsters lived. The distance between the two was thinner than one might think.

"The Boardwalk is where the tourists come to shop. You can find shops that sell dresses for over a thousand dollars here, and cafes with ludicrously expensive coffees."

Naruto whistled behind me. "No wonder the prices are jacked up. Look at the view. Ocean, sandy beaches, giant ass base floating above the water."

He was talking about the Protectorate Headquarters. A fully armed base with high towers and arches. It even had a forcefield bubble and missile defense system. The PHQ made the people feel safe, a symbol of peace, too bad the stupid heroes have sucked doing their jobs lately. Their inaction is the whole reason I'm donning a mask.

In the late 90's the superhero capes had barley began to establish a base in Brockton Bay. The city wasn't in the top 5 cities in the U.S., but it grew in capes rapidly, so the city became situated in the top ten, making it a location for a PHQ. It took a few years for the hero presence to establish and organize themselves, but they did, and there was something of an equilibrium now. Though the villains had already taken a chunk of the city with their gangs early on.

The Docks, filled with scum and easy to recruit idiots. I could see the change in the area. The quality of my surroundings declined suddenly as we got further into the Docks. There were enough warehouses and apartments in the area for even the most destitute to find shelter, so the only people on the streets were unconscious drunks, skimpy dressed women and gang members. I could feel Sasori's indifference and Naruto's disgust in the back of my mind.

As we walked, I was wondering if my powers had any cap to them. I had yet to try to make another construct. Mostly worried about the consequences of ripping away another human's chance of having a trigger event. I didn't know if that sort of thing could be checked. From reading up on parahumans I knew some Tinker inventions could figure it out. The likely hood of the PHQ discovering and starting an investigation: slim. But I didn't know if anybody I used my power on worked as a PHQ employee. One quick check up and a red flag will be put up. I doubted it will trace back to me, but another attempt of using my power might narrow their search; if they find out, of course.

A pull on my shoulder quickly brought me back to attention. Sasori had me drawn against the side of a building. He pointed to a spot of orange in the dark street ahead. The orange was the flame of a lighter, and I was able to make out several faces around it. They were Asian, some wearing hoodies, others wearing headbands or long sleeved shirts, but all wore the same colors. Red and green.

I knew who these guys were. They were members from the local gang that left the tags 'Azn Bad Boys', ABB for short, all over the East end of the city. More than a few went to my school. As far as the criminal element in Brockton Bay went, they weren't small potatoes. While the typical gang members were just Koreans, Japanese, Vietnamese and Chinese forcibly recruited from Brockton Bay's high schools and lower class neighborhoods, the gang was led by a couple of people with powers. Gangs didn't tend to be that racially inclusive as far as who joined, so it said something that their leader had the ability to draw in members from so many different nationalities and keep them in line.

These guys didn't have the atmosphere of merely hanging out. They were expressionless or scowling, and they weren't talking. Something was going down, because ABB members don't gather by the dozens for no reason.

"Take Taylor up to the roof. I want her to be at a good spot to see me beat these guys," Naruto stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. I felt Sasori's irritation at being ordered by his younger but he did nod. He grabbed me around my waist, and we jumped into the air, landing on a gravel roof covered with cigarette butts. I barely had time to notice an oddity in the ABB group walking bellow me before a member dropped to the ground.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

He was a little over six feet, though, which put him head and shoulders above most of the gang members. He had an ornate metal mask over his face, and wasn't wearing a shirt, despite the chill. Sprawling tattoos covered his body from the neck down, all depicting dragons from Eastern mythology.

Lung, leader of ABB and self-proclaimed strongest parahuman in Brockton Bay tightened his fists in anger. His men were being knocked unconscious one by one. Not that he held any care for them, but the weaklings did serve a purpose in numbers. But in the time span of two minutes he counted nearly half of his original group still on their feet.

A black figure with a blank wooden mask moved quickly. The unknown parahuman struck a younger ABB member in the gut with an elbow jab. As his latest victim doubled over, the assaulting parahuman grabbed the boy's collar and flew him into a gangster with a baseball bat. The two struck a brick wall and both crumbled to the ground.

An older Asian man brandished a knife and charged. His wrist was grabbed, then snapped. He tried punching his enemy's face. Only for his legs to be swept out from underneath, forcing him to lose his balance. In the next second a flat footed kick sent him into the sidewalk.

Another gang member yelled. He raised a pistol.

Lung was sure this nuisance will not be able doge a bullet. A skill in martial arts and perhaps enhanced speed amounted to nothing if you could easily die by a hole between the eyes.

The air filled with smoke. Lung grunted in surprise at seeing a second blond appear through the gas and knock the firearm out of the ABB member's hand.

It seem this person was full of tricks. High speed and clones. Lung felt steam roll off his body. It has been a long time since a new interesting Mover parahuman was spotted in the city. Lung made a quick decision. If the person proved to be useful, he'll offer him a place in the ABB's inner circle, provided he had Asian blood.

Lung released a heat wave to scatter his members. He decided fight this unknown without interference. His skin started forming scale like armor as he approached his soon to be follower.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

Sasori watched the beginning of the fight with an air of disregard. Naruto was in zero danger. The blond ninja, while no longer a jail for a tailed beast, did have impressive ninjutsu for taking down a man like Lung.

The Rasengan, an A-Rank Jutsu, capable of shredding into steel. It's Naruto's primary jutsu. With how easily Naruto handled it in the anime, Sasori was sure those abilities and variants are transferable to real life. Before Taylor had asked them to come along with her, Sasori and Naruto had a talk. They discussed the possible caps on their powers and limitations. From what the two gathered, Naruto had lost his Tailed Beast Chakra and the various powers related to that Biju. That meant he was stuck to his Sage Jutsu and his natural affinity to Wind Release.

Though perhaps it was better to not gather attention with Endbringer-isk power.

Missing jutsus aside, Sasori felt confident in Naruto defeating Lung. The ABB leader was a big guy, strong in a type of Fire Release, and able to self-regenerate.

Naruto and his shadow clone quickly charged. One punched Lung in the face, the other kicking him in the stomach.

Lung skidded backward. Triangular sections of metallic plating suffered spider web cracks from Naruto's chakra enhanced kick.

"Wow, Naruto is so strong," said an astonished Taylor. Sasori picked up a faint tone in glee in her words.

He nodded. Seeing Naruto's clone form a blue colored sphere of shredding chakra in the original's hands, Sasori saw Lung's end.

Lung exploded. He detonated in a blast of rolling fire that set his clothes, several pieces of litter and one of his gang members alight. The heat popped the clone and Naruto's robe looked slightly singed.

From their vantage point on the roof, they watched as he turned himself into a human bomb a second time. The second explosion turned his clothes to rags and sent his people fleeing for cover. He stepped out of the smoke with his hands burning like torches, the silvery scales that covered nearly a third of his body reflecting the flame.

Sasori placed a hand on Taylor's shoulder. He calmed her with his emotional ling, sending her waves of tranquility. His mistress should never be scared while he stood by her.

Naruto managed to jump above the oncoming wave and plunged to the ground, "Rasengan!"

Lung roared. It wasn't the monstrous roar one might expect, but a very human sound of rage and pain. As human as it sounded, though, it was loud. All the way down the street neighborhood, lights and flashlights flickered on in response to the explosions and the roar. Sasori frowned, seeing a few faces peering through windows to see the action. Civilians. If Lung's next attack shattered any glass, they could get hurt.

Flame lashed out the moment Naruto's jutsu dissipated. He manged to force Naruto to back away. Sasori, knowing what he did about the Rasengan, wasn't at all shocked at seeing the blood dripping down from Lung's shoulder. He was missing chunks of muscle and bone, making his right arm useless.

In a typical fight, you figure someone would get weaker as the fight dragged on. They would take their lumps, get tired, and exhaust their bag of tricks. With Lung, it was the opposite. Sasori flared his chakra, sending Naruto a signal to hurry up. This fight was dragging, he was getting impatient.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

Naruto's response was a middle finger. He had this! Well, okay, he didn't expect Lung to get right back up and start firing out red hot flames like an Uchiha, but he still had this.

He withdrew a red tail from his pants, coating the extra limb in wind chakra. Naruto got close and plunged it forward. Surely the razor sharp appendage was able to pierce through Lung's defense.

It did. A meaty looking gap appeared across his back, followed by a spray of blood and spinal fluid. Satisfyingly, Lung hunched over.

Naruto dusted off his hands and leaned back on his heels, his hands resting behind his head. Lung roared, fire spewing form his body till it covered him head to toe. Naruto wasn't sure just how much damage Lung could do when paralyzed at the waist down, but he guessed a lot by the feel of rising heat against his skin.

Lung's hands, still on fire, gripped the blackened pavement of the alleyway hard enough to crack the asphalt touching his fingertips. He looked like he was made of overlapping knives or spades, smoldering yellow-orange with the low temperature flame. There was no skin to be seen, and he was easily more muscled in his one arm that still moved. His undamaged shoulder was three feet across at the very least.

It had been a vain hope that he would give up with his legs out of commission. Naruto just counted himself lucky that he mostly crippled Lung. It wouldn't do well for their battle to get more devastating with Taylor just above them on the roof.

Naruto weaved a hand sing for a shadow clone to appear. He outstretched his hand, knowing the clone knew what to do.

"Muh… Motherfucker!" Lung screamed. With his tail, Naruto cut through a wave of flame intended for his head. It illuminated the alleyway behind him.

Frantically, Lung lashed out with a broader wave of flame that rolled over the blond. Up on the roof, Taylor had to back away as the hot air and flame reached to the roof top. It was still hot enough to have Sasori pull Taylor out of its range with chakra threads.

Lung stopped using his power, slowly trying to get up with only one working limb.

"Cock. Sucker," he growled in his heavily accented voice, his cussing interrupted by a swirling sound from above.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

I held my breath and stayed at still as possible. What could I do? Naruto was enveloped in fire and I could only watch from a distance. I looked to Sasori, silently asking for reassurance that Naruto was okay.

He didn't respond verbally, only sent more calmative emotions through our shared link. If the blond was in danger he'd have moved a while ago. So Naruto was alive then? Yes, I could still feel him, but how badly hurt was he? I screwed my eyes shut. _Please be safe._

When I heard the whirlwind of air I opened my eyes again. Lung was still on the ground, giving the impression of a silent scream. During that span of a few seconds he managed to get himself laying on his back.

Though I couldn't hear it over the crackling of flames, I knew Naruto had called out the name of his attack a second before it struck. The Odama Rasengan, roughly the size of a basketball, was grinding into Lung.

I stopped shaking, relief washing over me as Lung stopped moving and Naruto shrunk his improved Rasengan into nothing.

Without warning, a massive shape landed atop of the downed Lung with an impact I could swear people heard at the other end of the street. Naruto and Sasori flaked me, looking at the creature the size of a van. In a brief moment of stupidly I thought Naruto had somehow summed a giant toad. Though the 'massive object' was no amphibian, resembling more along the lines of Pain's odd summons. It was a cross between a lizard and a tiger, with tangles of muscle and bone where it ought to have skin, scales or fur. Lung was now fully pinned to the ground with the beast's sizable claws pressing against his chest.

I stood, aware of Naruto and Sasori tensing as two more impacts shook the roof. Two more creatures, similar to the first in texture, but slightly different in size and shape, had arrived on the rooftop. These two each had a pair of riders. I watched as the people slid off the backs of the animals. There were two girls, a guy, and a fourth I identified as male only because of the height. The tall one approached us, while the others hurried to the edge of the roof to assist the first creature. I doubted it need help. Naruto knocked Lung out cold.

"You three really saved us a lot of trouble," he told us. His voice was deep, masculine, but muffled by the helmet he wore. He was dressed entirely in black, a costume I realized was basically motorcycle leathers and a motorcycle helmet. The only thing that made me think it was a costume was the visor of his helmet. The full-face visor was sculpted to look like a stylized skull, and was as black as the rest of his costume, with only the faint highlights of reflected light on the surface to give a sense of what it was. It was one of those costumes that people put together out of what they can scrounge up, and it wasn't half bad if you didn't look too close. He reached out a hand towards me. I realized as the only one with a symbol on my mask he must think I'm the leader. I shook his hand, trying to make it firm even though I was a tad wary.

Withdrawing his hand, the man in black jerked his thumb over one shoulder, "When we got word Lung was aiming to come after us tonight, we were pretty freaked. We were arguing strategy for the better part of the day. We eventually decided, fuck it, we'd meet him halfway. Wing it. Not my usual way of doing things, but yeah."

Behind him, one of the girls whistled sharply and pointed down at the street. The two monsters the group had been riding on bounded across the roof and leaped down to the street to join the fight.

The guy in black kept talking, "Wouldn't you know, his flunky Lee is there with a half dozen guys, but Lung and the rest of his gang are nowhere to be found," he laughed, a surprisingly normal sound for someone wearing a mask with a skull on it.

"Lee's no slouch in a fight, but there's a reason he's not leader of the ABB. He got spooked without his boss there and ran. I guess you three are responsible for that?"

I looked to Sasori, unsure of what I should say. He was the smart one and had more experience than Naruto. He was a great spy master after all. "Correct," he said. I guessed he kept his answer short and sweet to withhold giving out information.

Skull-mask ventured towards the edge of the roof and looked down, then spoke without turning to look us, "Lung is creamed. The heck you do to him?"

"Punches, kicks, and two swirling balls of energy," the second of the girls said. I felt annoyance coming from Sasori. Guarding and collecting information was his specially. He would have left the question unanswered to protect our abilities. The girl dressed in a skintight outfit that combined black with a pale shade of blue or purple – I couldn't tell in the dark – and her dark blond hair was long and windblown. Her knowing grin made Sasori bristle with annoyance – no one but me could tell as he stood perfectly still. The girl grinned as she added, "He's not holding up too well. Gonna feel a helluvalot worse tomorrow."

The man in black suddenly turned to look at me – again my marked mask singled me out as the leader, "Introductions. That's Tattletale. I'm Grue. The girl with the dogs-" he pointed to the other girl, the one who had whistled and directed the monsters. She wasn't in costume unless I counted a plaid skirt, army boots, a torn-up sleeveless T-shirt and a hard plastic, dollar-store rottweiler mask as a costume. "-We call her Bitch, her preference, but in the interests of being P.G., the good guys and media decided to call her Hellhound instead. Last and certainly least, we have Regent."

I finally caught up with what he was saying. Those monsters were dogs? Well, I'd take Pain's doggies any day than those hideous things.

"Fuck you, Grue," Regent retorted, with a chuckle and a tone of voice that made it clear he wasn't really that offended. He was wearing a white mask, not quite as decorative or made up as the ones I associated with the carnivals in Venice, but similar. He'd placed a silver coronet around his short black curls, and wore a ruffled white shirt with skintight leggings tucked into knee-high boots. The outfit was very renaissance faire. He had a build that made me think more of a dancer than a bodybuilder.

Introductions done, Grue looked at Naruto for several long moments. After a few seconds, he asked me, "Hey, your friend's coat is scorched. Is he okay?"

"The reason she's not introducing herself or the others is because she's the team leader. And the guy is fine," Tattletale told him, as she continued to lean over the edge of the roof and watch whatever was going on at the street level, "Plus she's shy,"

Tattletale turned around and it looked like she was going to say something else, but she stopped, turning her head. The smile she'd been wearing faded, "Heads up. We've gotta scram."

Bitch nodded in response and whistled, one short whistle followed by two long ones. After a brief pause, the building was suddenly rattled by impacts. In just moments, the three creatures of hers leaped from the alleys to either side of the building and onto the roof.

Grue turned towards me. I was still standing on the opposite end of the roof, by the fire escape. "Hey, does your team want a ride?"

I looked at the bloodied, snarling creatures out of a nightmare. "I will go with you," Sasori began, his tone emotionless but to me it had a feeling of… zeal. I shrugged, giving him a slight nod. I expected his reason was to gather information.

Naruto shook his head. "Nah, Me and my little princess here got somewhere to be." I gave him a dumbfounded look and I _knew_ he said that to get me embarrassed. Dobe.

"Hey," Tattletale said to the both of us, seating herself just behind Bitch, "What're your names?"

Sasori looked at me from his spot on one of the giant dogs; right behind Regent.

I glanced at his blank mask and then at Tattletale. My voice caught in my throat before I was able to get the words out, "I don't… uh, Fox and Puppet." I pointed to Naruto and Sasori respectively. I then thought of what I should call myself, and seeing the monstrous dogs in my view as Tattletale waited for an answer; I got an idea, "Call me… Pain."

"Well, Pain, a cape is gonna show up in less than a minute. You did us a solid by healing with Lung, so take my advice. Someone from the Protectorate shows up, finds three bad guys duking it out, they're not going to let the winners walk away. You two should get out of here," She said. She flashed me a smile, and a wink at Naruto. She had one of those vulpine grins that turned up at the corners. Behind her simple black domino style mask, her eyes were glittering with mischief. If she had red hair, she would have made me think of a fox. She kind of did, anyways. Tattletale reminded me of a female version of Naruto. Scary.

As they left with Sasori in tow, I heard the cape arrive on his souped up motorcycle. I didn't want to be seen fleeing the scene of a fight, and risk being pinned responsible for this mess.

It's funny. Here I am, in Akatsuki robe, and I don't want to be pinned as the villain. I was pretty sure naming myself as the leader of a fictional criminal organization will do me no favors as well. That being said, do I want to form my own group? An Akatsuki in this world? One that is for protecting this city and getting rid of gangs. Or do I want to fall under the Protectorate East-North-East of the U.S. government?

Under the heroes of Canada and the U.S.A, I will be a Ward, a hero under the age of eighteen. Beneath the thumbs of the guys in charge. The core group of the Protectorate.

And speaking of the leading heroes, my inner thoughts had used up that small window of time to get away, a man was standing a few feet in front of me. I should have just ordered Naruto escort me home, because now I had to deal with this.

The man before me really did look like a superhero, not like some guy in a costume. It was an important distinction. He wore body armor, dark blue with silver highlights, had a sharply angled v-shaped visor covering his eyes and nose. With only the lower half of his face exposed, I could see a beard trimmed to trace the edges of his jaw. If I had to judge, with only the lower half of his face to go by, I'd guess he was in his late twenties or early thirties. His name was Armsmaster.

His trademark and weapon was his Halberd, which was basically a spear with an axe head on the end, souped up with gadgets and the kind of technology you generally only saw in science fiction. He was the kind of guy who appeared on magazine covers and did interviews on TV, so you could find almost anything about Armsmaster through various media, short of his secret identity. I knew his weapon could cut through steel as though it was butter, that it had plasma injectors for stuff that the blade alone couldn't cut and that he could fire off directed electromagnetic pulses to shut down forcefields and mechanical devices.

"You gonna fight me?" He called out.

"Unless the boss wants me too," Said Naruto.

"No, N… er, Fox, He's a superhero. We won't fight him. He's a good guy, like us," I said.

Stepping closer to me, he tilted his head, "You don't look like one."

That stung, especially coming from him. It was like The Sage of the Sixth Pathes saying you have no hope in saving the world. "I was going for looking cool," I responded a little defensively, "I spent more time working on my mask."

There was a long pause. Nervously, I turned my eyes from that opaque visor. I glanced at his chest emblem, a silhouette of his visor in blue against a silver background, and was struck with the ridiculous thought that I had once owned a pair of underpants with his emblem on the front. _That_ didn't make things more awkward, nope.

"You're telling the truth," he said. It was a definitive statement, which startled me. I wanted to ask how he knew, but I wasn't about to do or say anything that might change his mind.

He approached closer. Naruto tensed, his only tail showing gripping me around my waist. Armsmaster clearly noticed, with how he brought his weapon closer to himself, but he did ask, "You two need a hospital?"

"No," I said. "Fox and I are fine. I'm surprised as you are. Not every day you fight a powerhouse like Lung."

"New faces," he said.

"Pain… I guess, not quite sure on sticking with it. But it fits. Can't really come up with an original name when I have a laundry lest to choose from. Though I know some people will be calling me a dork. It's tough you know?"

He chuckled, and it sounded warm, very normal, "I wouldn't know. I got into the game early enough that I got to choose a name for myself."

There was a pause in conversation. I suddenly felt awkward. Then Naruto suddenly draped his arm around my shoulders, "Well, I'd say well call this a day. We've got supper in the oven so we really must being going, Mr. Armsmaster."

"Hold on! We need to discuss the consequences."

"Consequences," I muttered, even a grown rang my ears from Naruto.

"Hear me out. "Lung has an extensive gang throughout Brockton Bay and neighboring cities. More than that, he has two superpowered flunkies. Oni Lee and Bakuda."

I shook my head, "I know about Oni Lee. I've never heard of Bakuda."

Armsmaster nodded, "Not surprising. She's new. What we know about her is limited. She made her first appearance and demonstration of her powers by way of a drawn out terrorism campaign against Cornell University. Lung apparently recruited her and brought her to Brockton Bay after her plans were foiled by the New York Protectorate. This is… something of a concern."

"What are her powers?"

"Are you aware of the Tinker classification?"

I nodded, knowing that Sasori technically fit under that category, sort of, "Covers anyone with powers that give them an advanced grasp of science. Let's them make technology years ahead of its time. Ray guns, ice blasters, mechanized suits of armor, advanced computers."

"Close enough," Armsmaster said. It struck me he would be a Tinker, if his Halberd and armor were any indication. That, or he got his stuff from someone else. He elaborated, "Well, most Tinkers have a specialty or a special trick. Something they're particualrly good at or something that they can do, which other Tinkers can't. Bakuda's specialty is bombs."

I stared at him. A woman with a power that let her make bombs that were technologically decades ahead of their time. No wonder he saw it as a concern. Perhaps my next drawing I bring to life should be Deidara, he might give me an edge in the workings of explosives.

"Now I want you to consider the danger involved in taking the credit for Lung's capture. Without a doubt, Oni Lee and Bakuda will be looking to accomplish two goals. Freeing their boss and getting vengeance on the one responsible. I suspect you're now aware… these are scary people. Scarier in some ways than their boss."

"You're saying I shouldn't take the credit," I said. I looked over at Naruto, who shrugged. Compared to him, why should I be afraid?

"I'm saying you have two options. Option one is to join the Wards, where you'll have support and protection in the event of an altercation. Option two is to keep your head down. Don't take the credit. Fly under the radar."

I didn't like those choices. One put me into the Wards, a place to be monitored, more than protected. As for the second one, I couldn't just put my head down. I've went to long doing that. I could not deal with the complications and headaches that would come from joining the Wards. With only two insanely dangerous sociopaths coming after me, I actually felt safer than I probably should be. Both of them were a threat I planned to get rid of eventually. Why not move up my time table? Rip the bandage off quickly, as they say.

Right now it was about two in the morning. I was sleep deprived, and stressed form the first fight of my life. It'll be a good idea to sleep on this, but Armsmaster wanted an answer now. I decided to stick with my gut.

"Tell the press that Pain, leader of the Akatsuki, played a key role in Lung's capture. I don't care if you say PHQ helped," I told him, my heart thumping rapidly. There was no more turning back. This is where I stand now. On my own. Against a gang wanting my head on a pike. Saying the PHQ was involved will up my approval among the populous.

Armsmaster frowned, which I expected. He had tension about him suddenly. It made me think that he might be steeling himself up for hearing the news of a new parahuman's death. "I think you'll look back and see this was a very dumb move, Pain," He said, turning to walk to the other end of the roof, "Thank you for allowing the PHQ to spin this in our favor, but I can only offer you my advice. The two of you can't take on ABB alone." He stepped off the edge of the roof and dropped out of sight.

You can't take on ABB alone. He'd been saying, without openly admitting, that he expected us to die with just ourselves. He would take the hyena's share of the credit for Lung's capture, but the smoking carcass will go to us. Along with the two vultures circling up above.

Before I was in Naruto's arms, I heard the thrum of his motorcycle, presumably carrying Lung towards a life of confinement. I could hope.

Naruto got me home in fifteen minutes. On the way, we stopped and changed into civilian clothes. I knew my dad went to sleep even earlier than I did, and he slept like a log, so I had nothing to worry about as far as wrapping up the night.

It couldn't have gone any better. Strange as it sounds, those worlds filled me with excitement. A new change was coming, a promise to myself that forced away the fact that tomorrow was a school day. It might be a bit cliché, but I'm no longer tied to my fate. I've rose above it, as my own person. _Yeah_ , I thought as Naruto draped the blanket over me, _my powers are the best thing to ever happen to me._


	3. Chapter 3

**P/A: NEXT CHAPTER IS HERE. Oh, and the reason it's so close to the original is because it needs to happen liked it did. I can't being going AU right off the bat. I do not own, duh.  
**

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Chapter 3: Insinuation of a Puppet

I woke to the muffled sound of the radio in the bathroom playing country music. Reaching over to my alarm clock, I turned it around. 6:28. Which made today a weekday like any other. My alarm was set for six thirty, but I almost never needed it, because my dad was always in the shower at the same time. Routines defined us.

As a wave of fatigue swept over me, I wondered if I might be sick. It took a few moments of staring up at the ceiling to remember the events of last night. Small wonder I was tired. My brain had been put on 'oh shit' mode since Naruto's battle with Lung. With all that had happened, I hadn't slept at all during the night. Sasori left with those villains and sleeping was pushed to the back burner over my worry.

I forced myself out of bed. As a slave to my routine, it would be wrong to do otherwise. I made myself change into sweats and walk down to the kitchen sink to wash my face, fighting to keep awake. I was sitting at the kitchen table, pulling on my sneakers, when my dad came downstairs in his bathrobe.

My dad is not what you'd call an attractive man. Beanpole thin, weak chin, thinning dark hair that was on the cusp of baldness, big eyes and glasses that magnified those eyes further. As he entered the kitchen, he looked surprised to see me there. That's just the way my dad always looked: constantly bewildered. That, and a little defeated.

"Good morning, kiddo," he said, entering the kitchen and leaning down to kiss the crown of my head.

"Hey, dad."

He was already stepping toward the fridge as I replied. He looked over his shoulder, "A little glum?"

"Huh?"

"You sound down," he said.

I shook my head, "Tired. I didn't sleep well."

There was the slap of bacon hitting the frying pan. It was sizzling by the time he spoke, "You know, you could go back to bed, sleep in for another hour or so. You don't have to go on your run."

I smiled. It was equal parts annoying and sweet, that my dad hated me running. He worried about my safety, and couldn't turn down a chance to drop hints that I should stop, or be safer, or join a gym. I wasn't sure if he'd worry more or less if I told him about my powers. Maybe I could, or at least, tell a half truth.

"You know I do, dad. If I don't go today, I'll be leaving… ah… Leaf to run by himself. I can't leave a friend out to dry, dad."

"Leaf? I've never heard you mention him before."

"He runs the same time I do. So, he asked me to join him a week ago," I said. He held his gaze for a moment then bobbed his head. I suspect he'll ask to meet 'Leaf' sometime soon.

"Are you seeing him outside of just running?" he asked.

The question threw me off. To think he'd jump to that conclusion so suddenly. Then again, it's the first time I've talked about my social life to him. Shrugging, I took a bite of french toast, "A movie here or there, but for now were just friends."

"Huh uh."

"Seriously," I pressed. Dad still gave me a pointed look, searching me a sign of a lying. I felt a pang of guilt at realizing I'd lied to my dad, and that I pulled it off swimmingly.

"You know Gerry?" my dad asked.

I shrugged.

"You met him once or twice when you've visited me at work. Big guy, burly, Black Irish?"

Shrugging again, I took a bite of french toast. My dad was part of the Dockworkers Association, as the Union spokesperson and head of hiring. With the state of the Docks being what they were, that meant my dad was pretty much in charge of telling everyone that there were no jobs to be had, day after day.

"Rumor's going around he found work. Guess with who."

"Dunno," I said, around a mouthful of food.

"He's going to be one of Über and Leet's henchmen."

I raised my eyebrows. Über and Leet were local villains with a video game theme. They were pretty much as incompetent as villains could be while staying out of jail. They barely even rated as B-list.

"They going to make him wear a uniform? Bright primary colors, Tron style?"

My dad chuckled, "Probably."

"We're supposed to talk about how the powers thing has influenced our lives in class today. Maybe I'll mention that."

We ate in silence for a minute or two, then my dad put his fork down.

"I checked on you late last night. It was three when I spotted you in bed," he said.

I gave him a small nod and took another bite of french toast, even as my heart rate tripled and my mind searched for excuses.

"Leaf invited to a midnight movie," I finally opened my mouth, looking at my plate, "We watched _Star Wars_. After that he walked me home. He lives a few blocks down the neighborhood." I was 100% lying. Last night felt more like a horror movie, and it being in real life made it worse. That saying about digging your own grave, it was right, because I mentally winced at both the look my dad gave me and the fact that now he'll want to visit said person's house.

"Christ, Taylor," my father answered, "This isn't the kind of area where you can walk around in the middle of the night."

"We both had pepper spray," I protested, lamely. I should really look into asking Sasori for a spray can of his non-lethal poison. I'll feel safer with it than the pepper spray dad gave me.

"Fine, but I want to meet this Leaf guy tomorrow. And if you need a ride to his house again I'll drive you," my father demanded. On the inside I felt a little knot of unease in the pit off my stomach. Dad was probably speculating what my level of friendliness we shared to be walking home so late from a boy's place, and I prayed he didn't demand more; like the address of my make believe house.

"I'll ask him to stop by after school."

When my dad resumed eating I guessed that was the answer he was looking for. After he last bite he put his fork down with a solid clink on the plate.

"Next time tell me when you have another date."

He chuckled when I forced myself not to blush. It didn't work. I finished off my plate and stood up to put it in the sink and run water over it. My back blocked my red face. I'm sure Naruto heard all of that somehow. Darn shinobi skills. He's gonna make this ten times worse for me now.

"Going on your run?"

"Yeah," I said, putting my dishes in the beaten up old dishwasher and bent down to give my dad a hug on my way to the door.

"K.I.S.S.I.N.G."

"Ugh, we're only friends!" I shouted, embarrassed by his sing song voice.

"Just checking,' my dad said, his tone serious. I took that as my cue to go, heading out the side door and breaking into an all-out run the moment I was past the chain link gate at the side of the house. I felt Naruto keeping pace in the shadows of the morning sun.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

The hot shower was helping to wake me up after my run. Even so, I wasn't fully awake enough to hear the glass door open and close.

"Leaf? Really?"

I shrieked, my heart beat soaring at Naruto's voice. I spun around, holding my arms to my chest. My mouth forming a 'get out' until I just stopped and gawked. Naruto was bare chested, his upper body skinny and fit with abs I was sure he didn't have in the anime. They weren't washboard level, but still chalk lined enough for me to blame my girl hormones for subconsciously making him low level eye candy. That thought brought me to smack my own cheek. He's my creation. I shouldn't be thinking of him like that. Though, I appreciated he covered his junk with a make shift robe made of his nine red tails.

"You know I suck at making names," I admitted, showing him my back and reaching for the bottle of shampoo. Naruto being in the shower didn't bother me as much as it should have. I, in fact, felt safer. Perhaps with another boy I would automatically scream rape – any girl would. I didn't feel the need to run or yell at him. A part of me held onto my want to keep my back to him, just to insure my indifference to his presence. I figured that my powers of a Master kept me calm with Naruto being so close.

"Then I guess I'll have to Henge while I'm 'Leaf'," he said. "Any facial traits you want me to have?"

I could tell he was both serious and highly amused. I better get my word in before he shows up as Harry Potter with piercings.

"Hmm… combed over black hair, keep your blue eyes, and pick a decently handsome face. I don't want my dad thinking my 'boyfriend' is a gangster. Nothing crazy. You hear me, Naruto?"

"Loud and clear, Taylor-sama!" He was loving this to my embarrassment. Naruto decided to scrub my head with my shampoo and I let him help rinse it out afterwards. His soft hands on my scalp really did wonders to get me to unwind. Today was just like any other now.

I felt a bit nervous as I got to homeroom. Having basically skipped two classes the previous Friday, failing to turn in a major assignment, I figured that Mrs. Knott probably knew already. I didn't feel relieved when Mrs. Knott glanced up at me and gave a tight smile before turning her attention back to her computer. That just meant the humiliation would be redoubled if and when class was interrupted by someone coming down from the office. A part of me just wanted to miss this class too, just to avoid the potential humiliation and avoid drawing attention.

All in all, I felt anxious as I made my way to my computer, which kind of sucked because Computer class was one of the few parts of the school day I didn't usually dread. For one thing, it was the one class in which I was doing well. More to the point, neither Madison, Sophia nor Emma were in this class, though some of their friends were. Those girls didn't usually feel the need to harass me without the trio around, and I was further removed from them because I was in the advanced stream of the class.

A good three quarters of the people in the room were computer illiterate, being from families that didn't have the money for computers or families that didn't have much interest in the things, so they practiced typing without looking at the keyboard and had lessons in using search engines. By contrast, I was in the group that was learning some basic programming and spreadsheets. It didn't do a lot for my already geeky reputation, but I could deal.

Mrs. Knott was a tallish, broad shouldered and strong jawed woman. She kind of looked like a caricature of a transvestite with her long blond hair and trying-too-hard-to-be-girly dress and blouse. You just had to imagine her with stubble on her chin or hairy legs and she was the image of a man doing a very bad job at passing as a woman.

She was an alright teacher though; she was usually content to give us advanced students an in-class assignment and then focus on the more rambunctious majority for the rest of the class. This suited me just fine – I usually wrapped up the assignment in a half hour, leaving me an hour to use as I saw fit. I had been recalling and going over the events of the previous night during my morning run, and the first thing that I did when the ancient desktop finished its agonizing load process was to start digging for information.

The go-to place for news and discussion on capes was Parahumans Online. The front page had constant updates on recent, international news featuring capes. From there, I could go to the wiki, where there was information on individual capes, groups and events, or to the message boards, which broke down into nearly a hundred sub-boards, for specific cities and capes. I opened the wiki in one tab, then found and opened the message board for Brockton Bay in another.

I had the sense that either Tattletale or Grue were the leader of the group I had run into. Turning my attention to Tattletale, I searched the wiki. The result I got was disappointingly short, starting with a header reading "This article is a stub. Be a hero and help us expand it." There was a one sentence blurb on how she was an alleged villain active in Brockton Bay, with a single blurry picture. The only new information for me was that her costume was lavender. A search of the message boards turned up absolutely nothing. There wasn't even a hint as to what her power was.

I looked up Grue. There was actually information about him, but nothing detailed or definitive. The wiki stated he had been active for nearly three years, dealing in petty crimes such as robbing small stores and doing some work as an enforcer for those who wanted a little superpowered muscle along for a job. Recently, he had turned to higher scale crime, including corporate theft and robbing a casino, together with his new team. His power was listed as darkness generation in the sidebar under his picture. The picture seemed crisp enough, but the focus of it, Grue, was just a blurry black silhouette in the center.

I searched for Bitch, next. No results. I did another search for her more official title, Hellhound, and got a wealth of information. Rachel Lindt had never made any real attempt to hide her identity. She had apparently been homeless through most of her criminal career, just living on the streets and moving on whenever police or a cape came after her. The sightings and encounters with the homeless girl ended around a year ago – I figured that was when she joined forces with Grue, Tattletale and Regent. The picture in the sidebar was taken from surveillance camera footage – an unmasked, dark haired girl who I wouldn't have called pretty. She had a squarish, blunt-featured face with thick eyebrows. She was riding atop one of her monstrous 'dogs' like a jockey rides a horse, down the middle lane of a street.

According to the wiki entry, her powers manifested when she was fourteen, followed almost immediately by her demolishing the foster home she had been living in, injuring her foster mother and two other foster children in the process. This was followed by a two year series of skirmishes and retreats across Maine as various heroes and teams tried to apprehend her, and she either defeated them or successfully evaded capture. She had no powers that would have made her any stronger or faster than the average Jane, but she was apparently able to turn ordinary dogs into the creatures I had seen on the rooftop. Monsters the size of a car, all muscle, bone, fang and claw. A red box near the bottom of the page read, "Rachel Lindt has a public identity, but is known to be particularly hostile, antisocial and violent. If recognized, do not approach or provoke. Leave the area and notify authorities as to her last known location." At the very bottom of the page was a list of links that were related to her: two fansites and a news article relating to her early activities. A search of the message boards turned up too many results, leaving me unable to sift through the crap, the arguments, the speculation and the villain worship to find any genuine morsels of information. If nothing else, she was notorious. I sighed and moved on, making a mental note to do more investigation when I had the time.

The last member of the group was Regent. I wasn't all that surprised to find nothing on him. He and his group had been listed as low level compared to others like Lung. Who had more information under him then the others combined. Lung had made it a mission to conquer and absorb every gang with Asian members and many without. Once he had the manpower he needed, the non-Asian gangs were cannibalized for assets, their members discarded. Even though there were no more major gangs in the east end of town to absorb, he was still recruiting zealously. His method, now, was to go after anyone older than twelve and younger than sixty. It didn't matter if you were a gang member or not. If you were Asian and you lived in Brockton Bay, Lung and his people expected you to either join or to pay tribute one way or another.

He had two lieutenants: Oni Lee and Bakuda. Both had warnings of viciousness and to stay away if spotted. As for their powers: Oni Lee was a teleporter. His power seemed to be a mix of the Forth Hokage's teleporting and Naruto's shadow clones but on a time limit. When he disappeared he left a clone behind that had a set time of five to ten seconds before it disintegrated into a cloud of carbon ash. If that wasn't a scary mixture of father and son I didn't what was. Luckily he could only make one clone per teleport according to his page. I glanced at his picture. His costume consisted of a black bodysuit with a black bandoleer and belt for his knives, guns and grenades. The only color on him was an ornate Japanese-style demon mask, crimson with two green stripes down either side. Except for the mask, his costume gave off the distinct impression of a ninja, which just added weight to the notion that this was a guy who could and would slide a knife between your ribs.

I wondered if Sasori will think of him as a threat or not. The red head, in my opinion, showed better skill at hand to hand then this armature ninja. Still though, his power could be terrifying in a trained killer's hands.

Bakuda was a new entry, added to the ABB wiki page just ten days ago. The picture only showed her from the shoulders up, a girl with straight black hair, large opaque goggles over her eyes and a metal mask with a gas mask styled filter covering the lower half of her face. A braided cord of black, yellow and green wires looped over one of her shoulders. I couldn't pinpoint her ethnicity with the mask and goggles, and her age wasn't any easier to figure out.

The wiki had a lot of the same details Armsmaster had mentioned to me. Bakuda had essentially held a university ransom and she did it with her superhuman ability to design and fabricate high tech bombs. There was a link to a video titled 'Bomb Threat Cornell', but I didn't think it wise to play it in school, especially without headphones. I made a mental note to check it out when I got home.

The next thing that caught my eye was the section heading titled 'Defeats and Captures'. I scrolled down to read it. According to the wiki, Lung had apparently suffered a number of minor defeats at the hands of various teams, ranging from the Guild to the local teams of New Wave, the Wards and the Protectorate, but consistently managed to evade capture until last night. A blurb read, 'Armsmaster successfully ambushed and defeated the leader of the ABB, who was weakened from a recent encounter with a rival gang. Lung was taken to the PHQ for holding until the villain's trial by teleconference. Given Lung's extensive and well documented criminal history, it is expected he will face imprisonment in the Birdcage should he be found guilty at trial.'

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He probably thought Akatsuki was a joke. And his boss must've wanted the lion's share for the PR. By all rights, I should have been angry that Armsmaster took the credit for the fight. Instead, I felt gratitude. Better of have an origination like the ABB after the heroes then us. I made a quick judgment call last night. While I still wanted to be going by Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki, I also didn't want to have a target on by back publicly. Not yet, anyway. I wanted to be sure I could stand one my own with Naruto and Sasori before going to war on the gangs. I had no base of operations or finical leverage to go into hiding should something fuck us up. Until then, I guess being an amateur group of capes know by the Protectorate was okay. It's not like they will see us as their enemy – I hoped.

 _Tap. Tap._

I looked up, seeing, to my surprise, Sasori. Where had he been all morning? Behind the first floor window he held up a piece of paper. It looked to the people sitting next to me. They were still glued to the computer screens like they didn't hear the sound. Genjutsu? Sasori does of perfect chakra control to pull it off if he wanted.

The note in his hand was written with big letters but brief.

 _Tattletale wants to meet. Y or N?_

I didn't have any time to contemplate the note before the bell rang. So I gave Sasori a sharp nod. It wouldn't hurt to have a chat. It might be important.

He leaped away and I headed for my next class. I noticed the two students coming back to their senses as I entered the hall.

~~~Living Constructs~~~

The school day when on as normal. Minus the horrible group I got for Mr. Gladly's class but that was sheer bad luck. And also Mr. Gladly talking to me about my bullying problem, but I didn't want to shoot myself in the foot. My three tormentors would just get more vicious if I pointed fingers. Now though, I wanted to desperately leave.

"Nobody likes her. Nobody wants her here," Julia said.

"Such a loser. She didn't even turn in the major project for art, last Friday," Sophia responded.

"If she's not going to try, then why is she even coming to school?"

Despite the way the conversation sounded, they were talking to me. They were just pretending to talk to one another. It was both calculating in how they were managing plausible deniability while at the same time they were acting totally juvenile by pretending I wasn't there. A blend of immaturity mixed with craftiness in a way only high schoolers could manage. I would have laughed at the ridiculousness of it, if it hadn't been at my expense.

The moment I had left the classroom, Emma, Madison and Sophia had crowded me into a corner, with another six girls backing them up. I was unable to squeeze past them without getting pushed or elbowed back, so I couldn't do much more than lean against the window, listening while eight of the girls were rattling off an endless series of taunts and jibes. Before one girl was even finished, another started up. All the while, Emma stayed back and stayed quiet, the slightest of smiles on her face. I couldn't meet the eyes of any of the other girls without them barking a fresh torrent of insults directly to my face, so I just glared at Emma.

"Ugliest girl in our grade."

They were barely thinking about what they were saying and a lot of the insults were wildly off the mark or contradictory. One would say I was a slut, for example, then another might say a guy would puke before he touched me. The point wasn't being witty, being smart or being on target. It was more about delivering the feeling behind the words over and over, hammering it in. If I'd had just a moment to butt in, maybe I could have come up with retorts. If I could just kill their momentum, they probably wouldn't get back into the easy rhythm again. That said, I couldn't find the words, and there weren't any openings in the conversation where I wouldn't just be talked over.

While this particular tactic was new to me, I'd been putting up with stuff like this for a year and a half, now. At a certain point, I'd come to the conclusion that it was easier to sit back and take it, when it came to most things. They wanted me to fight back, because everything was stacked in their favor. If I stood up for myself and they still 'won', then it only served to feed their egos. If I came out ahead in some way, then they got more persistent and mean for the next time. So for much the same reason I hadn't fought Madison for the homework she had taken from me, I just leaned against the wall next to the window and waited for them to get bored with their game or get hungry enough to leave and go have their lunches.

"What does she use to wash her face? A Brillo pad?"

"She should! She'd look better!"

"Never talks to anybody. Maybe she knows she sounds like a retard and keeps her mouth shut."

"No, she's not that smart."

No more than three feet behind Emma, I could see Mr. Gladly leaving his classroom. The tirade didn't stop as I watched him tuck a stack of folders under one arm, find his keys and lock the door.

"If I were her, I'd kill myself," one of the girls announced.

Mr. Gladly turned to look me in the eyes.

"So glad we don't have gym with her. Can you imagine seeing her in the locker room? Gag me with a spoon."

I don't know what expression I had on my face, but I know I didn't look happy. No less than five minutes ago, Mr. Gladly had been trying to convince me to go with him to the office and tell the principal about the bullying. I watched him as he gave me a sad look, shifted the file folders to his free hand and then walked away.

I was stunned. I just couldn't wrap my head around how he could just ignore this. When he had been trying to help me, had he just been covering his own ass, doing what was required of him in the face of a situation he couldn't ignore? Had he just given up on me? After trying to help, in his own completely ineffective way, after I turned his offer for help down twice, he just decided I just wasn't worth the effort?

"And she smells," one girl said, lamely.

"Like expired grape and orange juice," Madison cut in with a little laugh. Again, bringing up the juice? I suspected that one had been her idea.

"So upset you're going to cry yourself to sleep for a straight week?" she asked.

My words died in my throat as I processed her words.

Almost a year before we had started high school, I had been at her house, the both of us eating breakfast and playing music way too loud. Emma's older sister had come downstairs with the phone. We'd turned down the music, and my dad had been on the other end, waiting to tell me in a broken voice that my mom had died in a car accident.

Emma's sister had given me a ride to my place, and I bawled the entire way there. I remember Emma crying too, out of sympathy, maybe. It could have been the fact that she thought my mom was the coolest adult in the world. Or perhaps it was because we really were best friends and she had no idea how to help me.

I didn't want to think about the month that had followed, but fragments came to mind without my asking. I could remember overhearing my dad berating my mother's body, because she'd been texting while driving, and she was the only one to blame. At one point, I barely ate for five straight days, because my dad was such a wreck that I wasn't on his radar. I'd eventually turned to Emma for help, asking to eat at her place for a few days. I think Emma's mom figured things out, and gave my dad a talking to, because he started pulling things together. We'd established our routine, so we wouldn't fall apart as a family again.

It was a month after my mom had died that Emma and I had found ourselves sitting on the bridge of a kid's play structure in the park, our rear ends cold from the damp wood, sipping coffee we'd bought from the Donut Hole. We didn't have anything to do, so we had just been walking around and talking about whatever. Our wandering had taken us to the playground, and we were resting our heels.

"You know, I admire you," she had said, abruptly.

"Why?" I had responded, completely mystified about the fact that someone gorgeous and amazing and popular like her could find something to admire in me.

"You're so resilient. After your mom died, you were totally in pieces, but you're so together after a month. I couldn't do that."

I could remember my admission, "I'm not resilient. I can hold it together during the day, but I've cried myself to sleep for a straight week."

That had been enough to open the floodgates, right there. She gave me her shoulder to cry on, and our coffee was cold before I was done.

Now, as I gaped at Emma, wordless, her smile widened. She remembered what I had said, then. She knew the memories it would evoke. At some point, that recollection had crossed her mind, and she had decided to weaponize it. She'd been waiting to drop it on me.

Fuck me, it worked. I felt the trail of a tear on my cheek. My power roared at the edges of my consciousness, buzzing, pressuring me. I suppressed it.

"She is! She's crying!" Madison laughed.

Angry at myself, I rubbed my hand over my cheek to brush the tear away. More were already welling up, ready to take its place.

"It's like you have a superpower, Emma!" one of the girls tittered.

I had taken off my backpack so I could lean against the wall. I reached to pick it up, but before I could, a foot hooked through the strap and dragged it away from me. I looked up and saw the owner of the foot – dark skinned, willowy Sophia – smirking at me.

"Oh em gee! What's she doing?" one of the girls said.

Sophia was leaning against the wall, one foot casually resting on top of my backpack. I didn't think it was worth fighting her over, if it gave her an opportunity to continue her game of keep-away. I left the bag where it was and shoved my way through the gathered girls, bumping an onlooker with my shoulder hard enough to make him stumble. I ran into the stairwell and out the doors on the ground floor.

When I was down a block and out of their sight I ran into a back alleyway. In a second Sasori and Naruto jumped down in front of me. I wasted no time and buried my face into the puppeteer's chest.

I cried.


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own anything made by the authors... blah blah blah.**

When trying to make myself unremarkable to the passing police car and the female cop inside I thought my naturally plain face might be all I needed. Most cops would usually drive on by at seeing a teenager walking the streets of Brockton Bay during school hours. The number of gang members in the city alone had to be in the high hundreds, and that meant that even on a school day with most teens in class, there was a bunch of skippers lollygagging around.

Sure, I had a better reason for cutting class than them, but the officer looking at me from inside her vehicle didn't know that. Amongst the men and woman normally walking the wide sidewalk I probably stood out like a sour thumb.

Downtown didn't have much gang activity so close to the mall, so that really left a good chunk of people closer to my age group missing. And I had been hoping for the rest of my day to be as bright as the blue overhead after my horrible morning with Emma.

Go-figure.

The police car slowed down coming towards me. I wondered if the brown haired woman driving it was going to park by the curb and get out. I've been watching her looking at me, taking a glance off the slow moving traffic to look at me, not in my general direction, but _right_ at me ever two seconds.

Was it the hoodie? Did it look like I was gonna rob some poor guy?

Okay, that one was sort of already done. Between the wooden material, gears, and _God knows_ what else Sasori had stuffed in his puppet body during previous nights; I am positive he'd done some ninja bullshit to get the cash for it all. Whatever, he knew my rules of no killing. No harm if he swiped a rich guy's wallet with his chakra threads.

Still, what about me caught her eye? It was a burning question in my mind because the police car did indeed pull over and now the officer was walking straight towards me after she shut the car door. She had this determined stride going for her, making me nervous. I considered the possibility of getting drove back to school, but first I had to be caught. She could look my name up and that'll be it for me. My dad will be called in from work or home – he had such an unreliable schedule these days – and I get grounded for the weekend because Emma and I were still friends in his eyes. Thus, him seeing me in disappointment because there was no way in hell I'd explain why I ditched school.

This might become a lose-lose scenario very soon.

If I told him she became a bitch a year ago and that it was her words that made me cry and ditch school, well, I didn't know what he'd do next. Plus, I'd be seen dropped off at the school grounds and then harassed about it by Emma the next day. More fuel for her fire.

Worst case, I'm hauled back. Best case, I'm warned to not ditch again.

Perplexingly she shoulder-bumped me. I had no idea where that came from, I'd been ready to be polite too. It turned to get her attention. She had been solely focused on me for a second there and now she gets rude? I stopped myself before I could do so and continued to walk.

The police officer had stepped into a line of people waiting their turn at a street vendor. I could have sworn her eyes locked onto mine, but I couldn't really imagine a reason for her to single me out, having committed no crime.

I saw the vendor selling hot dogs and thought with everyone, even the officer, on their lunch breaks, I should eat something as well. My stomach growled at the thought. I checked my pockets and raised an eyebrow at finding folded up a piece of paper that I didn't have before. My lunch money was forgotten and sadly I doubted I'd have enough for mall food, but reading the female cop's message should be the first thing on my mind.

I unfolded the tiny scrap of line paper and checked to see what odd thing she had written. To look less suspicious? Maybe. It was two words, in black ink, and made my heart pound:

 _Suigetsu Hōzuki_

This was a bona fide information leak. A dangerous one. My heartbeat quickened as I swiftly turned to try and spot her; my mild panic only increased when she seem to have vanished. I was pretty sure I looked like a moron to anyone on the street who happened to notice my jerky movements.

As I thought about who that had been, taking mental notes on her face, I noted her image was now coming up foggy. If a visual thought about her popped up it disappeared. The more I thought about it, the quicker the memory faded, and soon those wants to recall her face became an alienated desire. No, doing so felt taboo and awful.

What was happening to me? Whoever that person – I can't remember their looks – gave me this piece of paper.

Okay, so they know about my power and, using a cape power, showed me that they have at least a meager interest in it. If I understood what they wanted correctly, I needed to create Suigetsu so they could… force him to do them a favor later? Maybe kidnap me as an incentive? Though they could always go after Dad, as they already knew my face and powers.

"Tell me, God. In what I've done these last nights how did some scary no-name cape find out my secret identity?"

I, aggravatingly, headed in the direction of the mall. There were no disembodied voices answering me as I walked two blocks.

The Mall was busy, which made sense, given the sales and marked down items that had been advertised. Brockton Bay's Mall did not look dirty, with tall ceilings, a bunch of brand name shops, and restaurants, it attracted the sort of rich people in the city. It was only a step down from the Boardwalk really.

I headed up to the second floor, where my favorite clothes store was located. I anticipated Sasori to put up a genjutsu to clear out the shoppers, but to my surprise, the majority of them, all girls, were huddled just outside the men's changing room. A couple of the girls were leaning over to press their ears against the wooden door. I drew closer till I was within their group, waiting towards the back so I could get a clue to what was happening. I admit to being curious.

A girl with her ear to the door gulped loudly, "Oh my gosh. They're doing foreplay now. Eek!"

By the time I processed what I heard another girl had fainted. I bit my lip a little too hard, realizing the girls were overhearing the going on's of the men's changing room. The very one I knew I told Naruto to be at. I found the urge to leave, go back through those double sliding glass doors of the clothes shop and wait for Sasori to arrive, then order him to castrate the blond. A joyful image of Naruto begging forgiveness came to mind. Uh, stupid playboy.

"Oh-oh, come on man. This one is lacey. And it matches your hair."

I knew that voice.

"No way, not happening, Naruto!"

And I knew that one too.

"Ah geez, they're just panties," Naruto said, "And they're small, you know, because you don't have a penis."

"My body has no need for one," Sasori said, "Seducing a female is the furthest importance in my mind. Still, I'm not putting on girls' underwear." His voice sounded final.

"Oh? Then how about I try this!"

Behind the blushing eavesdroppers, I widened my eyes, flicking from girl to girl to girl. I could easily see what each one was thinking from their red ears. A bang came from inside and Naruto's bubbly laughter came next, followed by a muffled voice. I guessed Naruto had gagged Sasori somehow. From the increasing laughter and anther sound of a scuffle, I immediately had a pretty good idea of who won.

With a sigh, I passed the girls. They yelled at me, quietly, not to open the door. As soon as I touched it they scattered but I think it had more to do with a genjutsu. You'd think they'd want to see the scene inside with how they were liking it a second ago. However, Sasori could easily whip one up to set off like a motion detector. Impressive.

"I'm here," I introduced myself. Before me, Sasori lay on his front, wrapped in Naruto's nine tails; eight stretching out his arms, one around his mouth.

"Taylor," Naruto breathed, he looked cut off guard by a bit. His two hands were slipping a pair of exotic red panties over Sasori's butt. The elastic underwear slipped between his fingers with a tiny snap.

"We – I – got bored and decided to try one some clothes," Naruto told me. Then more to Sasori than me, he said, "and he's got no package down there."

"My immortal body has no use for one," Sasori muffled.

"And did you know he's got a fake butt too," Naruto said, "It's all soft and feels like a boob job. Man, your body is made of wood. How does that work?"

I shook my head, he wasn't this… Naruto-ish in Naruto. What do I even call this?

Naruto let Sasori free, who removed panties off said butt and threw them in Naruto's face.

"Knucklehead," Sasori said to him. He turned to fully face me. Well, Naruto did have a point, as I glanced at the redhead's empty crotch. Nothing there, just like a genderless manikin.

"Just put some damn clothes on," I said.

"Yes Taylor," Naruto said, slapping Sasori in the ass right before I gave them their privacy.

The next five minutes were filled with Naruto's yelps. I flinched a few times, standing out sided the entrance to the changing room. Apparently my constructs cold feel pain just like any human. When the two came out in civilian clothes Naruto was rubbing his crotch and had a red choke mark over his windpipe. I could tell Sasori didn't take Naruto's actions to kindly.

I let out a breath. I know I should tell them about the possibly extremely dangerous cape who knows about me. I decided on planning to explain it later, after the meeting with the Undersiders. Just see what they have to offer to Akatsuki, to Pain, and then figure out this mess with Suigetsu.


End file.
